Run, Baby, Run
by Twisted Secrets Tangled Lies
Summary: "You can let go of my arm, I'm not going to run away." But just how much truth will remain in those words when the end comes and Eva Storms is faced with a decision unlike any? Stay or Go? Life or Death? Her or Her Friends? In the end it will be her decision alone that will decide the fate of the Teen Titans.
1. Chapter One

_~ Run, Baby, Run ~_

_Chapter One_

* * *

Darkness smothered the towers of boxes that rose high into the sky, almost touching the rotting roof. Tufts of grass grew through the cracked concrete floor. Dust covered everything and made the abandoned warehouse almost impossible to enter if one was cursed with hay fever. Thankfully the young girl that crept quietly through the many pathways created by the boxes could breathe easy amongst the dust and other things kept in the boxes.

She kept low to the ground as she crept; still worried that someone had followed her back. Even if she had just stolen a small package the police were still after her for all the over stuff she'd stolen and if they caught her it'd be a one way trip to jail for a very long time. As she pondered over how horrible jail would be she failed to notice the small box that had fallen into her path. Her foot came into contact with it and she fell with a loud _oof_.

The floor rushed up to meet her but thankfully wasn't that far away, however her hands didn't move quick enough to save her face from crashing into the concrete. She uttered a string of curse words as her face began to throb painfully and cast an angry glare back at the box that had tripped her. Except now it wasn't a box anymore, it was just the remnants of a broken box, a pile of splintered wood with a soft toy protruding from the mess. Her eyes softened at the sight of the juvenile toy resting amongst the wood.

She was surprised to say the least to find a soft toy amongst the many weapons, poisons and other monstrosities hidden behind the wood of the boxes. It made her heart ache painfully as her hands wrapped around the body of the soft toy as she lifted it over to her and stared at it. Black, emotionless eyes – eyes that aren't really eyes just beads – stared back at her. She scrunched her eyes closed as she gripped the soft toy in her hands. _He would love this_, her mind murmured. Another pang of pain racked her heart.

"But I cannot give it to him," she whispered in reply. A surge of anger rose up from behind the pain and she tossed the soft toy away, not watching to see where it landed. As far as she was concerned she would be happy if she never saw it again. Such an object would only conjure up more memories and heart ache.

The abandoned warehouse suddenly seemed much colder and darker as a thread of icy wind worked its way through the big building. It chilled the young girl through her black attire, sinking into her skin and freezing her bones. She scrambled to her feet and set about hurrying through the dark warehouse with her arms hugged tightly around herself. Hugging herself was the only form of comfort she received nowadays.

From the darkness appeared a single shred of red light that blinked in and out of existence every few seconds. As she approached the light a mechanical voice rung out and pierced her ears. "State your business."

"It's me," was all she needed to say for the machine to recognise her.

"Welcome back. I hope you did what he asked," the voice warned as the wall in front of her swung open to reveal a lift. Sickly yellow lights illuminated the lift and sent a wave of nausea crashing over her as she stepped into the lift. The wall and then the lift door swung shut behind her, imprisoning her with the sickly lights.

"Of course I did what he asked," she spat. "If I hadn't I wouldn't be standing here. Now can you please start the lift? He's waiting for me."

As the voice made a hardly audible grumbling noise she began to wish that he hadn't given the security system a personality. Arguably it was amusing at times to listen to him and the computer arguing over how much power needed to be used in keeping prisoners locked up but most times it was just annoying to have to return and be lectured twice. The lift lurched into life, slowly descending into the bowels of the earth. "He doesn't wait, he expects."

For once the young girl had to agree with the computer. Her master never really waited, he just expected her to return on time with the item he had requested. She'd never been late, _ever._

The rest of the lift ride fell into silence, only broken by the mechanical noises made by the old lift, noises that were unnerving to say the least. Finally a dull glow broke through the sickly yellow light of the cage-like lift and she recognised the place that had become like a home to her. _If homes were like prisons, _her mind mocked. She discarded the thought as the lift door swung open to reveal a place even duller than the warehouse.

Many computer screens made up the largest wall with many desks filled with controls situated in the middle. Atop a raised platform sat a chair where her master usually sat but tonight the chair sat empty. Her eyes flashed to the shadows that leered hungrily at her from the edges of the first room. Fear clutched at her as she imaged him flying from the shadows to deal her with a sharp kick in the head. But no such attack came. She tilted her head back to stare up at the ceiling where many pipes of different sizes crisscrossed each other. No shadows heralded his arrival from there either.

Confusion replaced fear as she took a few more steps away from the lift. She jumped when the door clanked shut behind her and mentally scolded herself for acting like a child. If she was beaten then she'd done something to deserve it. Maybe the police or some superhero bent on stopping her master had followed her into the warehouse. _Or maybe he's just somewhere else? _

"No," she muttered strongly. "He is always here to greet me."

A shrill scream shattered the silence and the young girl dropped her package, ignoring the metallic sound it made when it hit the floor. Her heart began to race as she took off in the direction the scream came from, repeating the word no in her mind over and over as she ran. Mazes of hallways did nothing to stop the girl as she felt unbridled fear once again wash over her.

Her mad dash came to an abrupt stop when she was presented with a strong looking metal door, the door that had kept her away from all that was left in her life, the door that kept her working for her master. Another scream pierced her heart and she kicked at the door with all her strength, only to have a sharp pain seize her foot. The door hadn't even dented. Pure anger mixed with her fear as she beat at the door with her fists and with her feet. A strange feeling began to thread it's way through her body and she swore she saw her hands glow a fiery red colour.

But then the door came crashing down just as a small body hit the floor inside the small room that had been barricaded so strongly. "No!" she screamed as her eyes took in the horrific scene before her. Three bodies lay broken on the ground, sparks of electricity leaping from collars fastened around their necks. "You promised you wouldn't!"

"Promises grow old with time," came the deep response. The girl snapped her head to the right to see her master standing in the corner of the white room, a small controller clasped tightly in his hand. A single finger still held the button atop the controller down. "My dear, you need to understand that these people cannot help you anymore. Only I can give you the life you so desperately yearn for. A life of being free to do what you want."

"I would much rather have had a life of being dragged off to do things I don't want to if it meant I'd be home with my family!" By now hot tears had begun to stream from her eyes as she fell to her knees. She didn't even attempt to strike out at the man as he picked her up and carried her from the room that was now stained with death; she just hung limply in his arms and allowed the tears to continue to flow. Only when he put her down did she stop crying and fall silent.

"You don't need them anymore," he said as he straightened back up.

The girl's eyes snapped open, "Yes. I do." She shivered with fear when he picked her up by the collar of her shirt and stared into her green eyes with his single eye. Even from under his metal mask she could tell he was angry.

"I am all you need. You don't need them to train, but you need me. You don't need them to learn, but you need me. You don't _need _them, understand?" he demanded.

"Yes," she sighed, defeated. "But if I am no longer serving you to keep them alive then what am I to you?"

He pondered her question for a little while before he threw her to the ground, ignoring her small cry of pain. "My apprentice."

* * *

**AN: I thank you for getting this far and for reading my first chapter. Just call me Twist! I'm not really a newbie on FanFiction, I have another account that I use mainly for one particular fandom, so I decided to create another for the Teen Titans fandom. Reviews are always loved. New chapter next Tuesday! **

**~Twist~**


	2. Chapter Two

_~ Run, Baby, Run ~ _

_Chapter Two_

* * *

_Four Years Later_

The sounds of fighting reached her ears, even from her position atop one of the many beams of wood that ran across the roof of Slade's newest hideout. She scowled in annoyance. Slade really didn't choose his hideouts by their comfort, appeal or ease to get to. All of the ones she'd been in over the past four years had been rundown buildings or lairs built deep underground. She snapped herself out of her wandering state of mind to watch the fight going on beneath her, the fight that had been building for weeks.

Slade was holding up well against the teenage hero she'd come to know as Robin, which didn't surprise her. Robin was a teenager whilst Slade was far older than him. But both were evenly matched. The girl watched with curious green eyes as Slade kicked out at Robin, catching the boy in the stomach. She winced knowing that a blow like that would have hurt.

Harsh words were shared between the two before the battle resumed between master and apprentice. At first she had been confused as to why Slade had acquired another apprentice and then she had felt pity for Robin. No one should ever have to face the horrors she had as Slade's apprentice. Hurt stabbed at her heart like a knife. She'd lost everything because Slade had seen potential in her.

But now her time was coming to rid herself of the man that had destroyed her life. If everything went right she'd be free, Slade would be dead and Robin would be able to return to his life as the leader of some group of heroes. Maybe then she'd be able to conjure up some sort of a life for her to live. _Running from the police for the rest of your life doesn't seem like a very appealing life_, the voice in her head murmured. She tossed her head as if to dislodge the voice. _At least it would be a life away from Slade. _

The wood beneath her wobbled slightly, almost throwing her off and she stared down at it, confused. Before she could ponder the wobbling wood anymore she was drawn to the attention of Robin ripping Slade's mark from his uniform and throwing it to the ground. She widened her eyes at his open act of defiance towards Slade. _He's certainly brave. _

"I'll kill them!" Slade's voice reached her ears and she hung her head. She knew that he meant his threats; Robin would lose everything if he didn't do what Slade said.

A loud rumble surprised her and shook the whole building, forcing her to grip onto her wooden roost with both hands as part of the roof caved in. Four shapes plummeted to the ground and she recognised them as the remaining members of Robin's team. Her heart skipped a beat at the bravery she saw in each member of the team, willing to die to save their leader. It was noble, something she'd never do for Slade.

Her eyes picked up movement from Slade as he activated the probes that dwelled within each of the invading team members. They began to glow orange as the probes sent waves of pain shooting through each of them, slowly killing them from the inside. She heard Slade order Robin to attack them or he'd kill them and watched Robin as he faltered. A part of her prayed for Robin to attack Slade once again, to kill the man that had ruined her life.

A cry of pain from one of Robin's team members seemed to do something to the boy. "What?" she murmured as she watched him race towards the probe machine, grabbing onto it and injecting himself with the deadly probes. She inhaled sharply. Didn't he know that he'd just killed both himself and his team? All Slade wanted to do was kill the Teen Titans and now he had his chance.

_No. Not if I can help it. _She saw her chance. All of Slade's attention was now focused on Robin. Her breath hitched in her throat as she tensed her muscles and leaped, hoping that her speed would aid her attack. The fall seemed to go in slow motion as both the ground and Slade drew nearer. Pained gasps and cries from the fallen Titan's pierced the silence of the fall and then it was over and she crashed into Slade, knocking the controller from his hand.

Slade's eye widened in shock at the sight of his 'loyal' apprentice standing above him with a fist raised in the air. "What are you doing!?" he roared and attempted to throw her off. She brought her fist crashing down on his face and then vaulted away from Slade's vicious punch. All of her training had prepared her for a moment like this, when she faced off against an enemy so much more powerful and intimidating than her. She didn't even hear the controller crunch under her foot as she landed on it.

"I'm taking back my freedom!" she screamed back and then pounced forwards to unleash all her pent up fury on Slade. A sharp kick from her sent Slade reeling as he clutched his stomach only to straighten up and grab a fistful of her hair. He punched her in the stomach and she sucked in a deep breath as pain blossomed from the place Slade now punched over and over. In retaliation she pulled her hair from his grip, grabbed his arm in her hand and ducked behind him, pulling his arm back far enough that it popped out of its socket. Slade roared with pain and anger and picked up a metal pipe he had used against Robin. With one arm now useless the battle looked to be in her favour.

That was until she found herself backed up against the computer screens. She ducked to one side to avoid the pipe, shifted right to avoid it again and then jumped to avoid having her feet knocked out from under her. Slade grew angrier and angrier with every strike that he missed, ignoring the fact that he was destroying his computer screens every time he missed her. As he got angrier his attacks got sloppier until one botched attempt to stab her with the pipe allowed the girl to firmly grip the other end of the metal pipe. She pulled it, dragging Slade's face close to hers. "I have waited for this moment for months," she hissed at him through gritted teeth. "And now my moment has come."

She wrenched the pipe so hard to the left that it slipped out of Slade's hand. He punched her in the shoulder and then kicked her in the gut but she was too focused to really feel the pain. In one swift move she brought the metal pipe down on Slade's face, cracking his mask in two so that it broke on one side. She swept his legs out from under him and pinned him there, watching as he frantically tried to cover up his identity with the broken part of his mask. She raised the metal pipe in the air and was about to bring it down on Slade when someone cried out, "No!"

The cry made her falter as she raised her head to find out who had cried out and why and Slade used that moment of lost focus to pull her down onto the ground beside him, deal her a few hard blows to the face and then race away into the shadows. She groaned in pain as she felt sticky blood oozing out from a cut on her face.

A shadow fell over her. "Who are you?" someone asked hoarsely. She recognised it as Robin, the boy Slade had tried so hard to win over.

"Depends, if I tell you my name are you going to use it against me?" she questioned as she sat up and rubbed her aching head.

Robin smirked slightly, "No. You just defeated Slade so I want to use your name to thank you."

The girl eyed him warily and then shrugged. "Evelena. But you can just call me Eva."

Before they could say another word a loud wailing siren split their ears and Slade's lair began to flash red. Eva scowled, "He's set off the self destruct. If you don't get out of here soon then you'll be crushed."

"What about you?" Robin questioned. "Where are you going to go?"

"I don't know, anywhere but here. Might crash in an abandoned warehouse," she replied sourly, not caring that the boy wouldn't understand her hatred of abandoned warehouses. A loud voice reached them through the sound of wailing sirens, a voice that was calling for Robin. "You should get to your team; they'll probably need you now more than ever."

Robin nodded and then extended his hand to help Eva up. She accepted it and then winced when she noticed blood staining her stomach through her black attire. The boy also noticed it. "Come back with me. Cyborg can fix you up and then you can tell us why you attacked Slade out of nowhere."

Eva hesitated not sure what he or the rest of his team would say when she told them she had worked for Slade for five years. But when another wave of pain nearly brought her to her knees she decided that it was worth the risk. "If you insist." He smiled slightly and began to make his way over to where most of his team still lay crumpled on the ground.

That was when cold hands encircled Eva's waist and dragged her back into the shadows. She screamed in fear as she felt something sharp touch her throat. Her scream was loud enough that it captured the attention of the Titan's – the ones that were awake – and they turned to see her being dragged away by none other than Slade, his face hidden behind a newly acquired mask, with a knife pressed against her throat.

* * *

**AN: So there's not exactly a week in between the chapters but I have up until chapter five written so I might be updating quickly. **

_**Wolf of IndigoRiver: **_**Thank you for your review! I'm glad you liked my first chapter. **

_**~ Twist ~**_


	3. Chapter Three

_~ Run, Baby, Run ~ _

_Chapter Three_

* * *

Robin felt his blood turn to ice at the sight of the girl being dragged away by Slade with a knife pressed against her throat. A hand grabbed his shoulder and he spun around, ready to attack, only to see Cyborg standing behind him, eyes also staring at the place the girl and Slade had vanished. "She saved your life, man. I think you owe her one."

"But I have to see to the rest of the team?" Robin waved at where his team still lay still with the exception of Beast Boy who was on his feet staring at the probe machine whilst shaking his head.

Cyborg shook his head, "They will wake up soon. Beast Boy and I will get the girls to safety but you need to make sure that other girl, the one that saved us all, doesn't end up being killed by Slade."

"Look after them," Robin pleaded and then took off after Slade. He ducked through the hole Slade had vanished into and waited for his eyes to adjust to the darkness. The sirens continued to wail as the building slowly fell to pieces around him and he realised that he didn't have that much time left before the building came crashing down.

Thankfully the path Slade had taken was painfully obvious, most likely due to Eva escaping his grip a few times. The drops of blood on the floor were helpful but Robin couldn't help but worry that they were from Eva. He crept quickly and silently through the maze of machinery, following the trail of blood for what seemed to be ages. He was on the brink of giving up when he heard a loud, shrill scream echoed from nearby. Without really thinking about it he ran in the direction of the scream, not noticing that the drops of blood had become spatters.

Another scream rang out, this one much closer, just as Robin rounded a corner and came to an abrupt stop. He'd found Slade and Eva, he just kind of wished he hadn't. Eva lay crumpled on the floor with a puddle of blood surrounding her as Slade stood above her with a bloodstained knife clutched in one hand. "You betrayed me," Slade growled as he picked Eva up by the collar of her shirt. "After all I've done for you, all the training, all the weapons, this is how you thank me? By attacking me and breaking my mask?"

"The only thing you've done for me is imprison me within my own sorrow," Eva retorted weakly.

Slade brought his knife to rest against her stomach and cut through her black shirt to reveal the scarred skin beneath. "You're telling me that, for five years, you never once actually enjoyed being my apprentice? I don't believe you." Then he plunged his knife into Eva's stomach just as Robin leapt out of the shadows with a loud battle cry. Eva shrieked in pain as Slade twisted the knife around and then dropped her so that he could face Robin. "You haven't seen the last of me," he vowed and then fled. Robin fell to his knees beside Eva as she writhed on the ground, blood already beginning to ooze out from around the knife that was still lodged in her stomach.

Her breathing was quick and shallow, her eyes scrunched closed, her face contorted into a look of pain and her brown hair was stained red with her own blood. She looked horrible and Robin knew that if she didn't get help soon then she'd die. "Hold on, Eva," he murmured as he gathered the bloody girl up in his arms. "You can't die without telling me who you really are." Once he was certain Eva was as comfortable as she could be he began to rack his brain for a way of escaping. There was no way he'd be able to run, there just wasn't enough time left.

As he pondered escape the building finally sagged and gave in. But before any falling bits of debris could hit them a black shield was thrown up. Robin turned to see Raven – eyes glowing white as she kept up the shield – and sighed in relief. But he knew she wouldn't be able to hold up the shield if the whole roof fell on them. It was as if Raven had read his mind, "Grab onto me and make sure you don't let go of the girl." He did as he was told, grabbing a hold of Raven's arm. The next moment they were outside, watching as the building collapsed in a massive cloud of dust.

"That was close," Robin remarked as he glanced down at Eva's paling face. He could feel her growing cold in his arms. "We need to get her back to the tower before she dies."

Raven nodded and without saying anything offered her arm to Robin so that he could grab it. Within seconds they were standing in the common room of the Titans Tower, making Beast Boy and Cyborg jump. They both stared at the bleeding girl in Robin's arms. "She doesn't look too good," Beast Boy pointed out, earning himself a glare from everyone in the common room.

"She's not. Cyborg, could you take her to the infirmary and fix her up? I think she has more stab wounds than just the one with the knife in it," Robin asked. Cyborg nodded and took Eva before he disappeared through the doors on his way down to the infirmary. Robin glanced down at his uniform, not surprised to find it stained with Eva's blood. He looked back up at Raven and Beast Boy only to find them staring at him. "Where's Star?"

It was Raven that answered with her head hung sadly. Her hood fell off to reveal her tear-filled eyes. "She didn't make it."

**-OOO-**

Eva shot up, throwing the thin white sheets off of her body in her made struggle to pull herself out of the horrible nightmare she had ended up in. Her sudden movement re-sparked the fire of pain in her stomach and she groaned, clutching at it with her hands. She was shocked to feel skin instead of her usual black attire. That was when she realised that she wasn't in her 'room' in Slade's lair. Panic seized her as she stared at the white curtains on either side of her and the wide window in front of her.

"I don't believe I've been here before," Eva said to no one in particular, hoping for an answer. When she didn't receive one she sighed and swung her legs out of the white bed. She sucked in a deep breath when she saw how bruised her legs looked against the white of the dress she had been dressed in. Vaguely she wondered who'd changed her out of her black clothes but another bout of pain chased the question from her mind.

From where she sat she could just see out of the long window but all she could see was gray water as it moved gently, flowing with the current. A craving to see more of the beautiful view pushed Eva to stand on her shaky, bruised legs. They shook a little as she stood, the bruises throbbing a little. The white dress she had been supplied finished half way down her thigh and covered her stomach from view, worrying Eva more than it should. Had her stomach been covered on purpose because it was so badly damaged? It felt like the skin had been ripped off and then stitched back on again.

She took a deep breath to steady herself before she began to make her way over to the window, taking it one shaky step and at a time. As she got close to the window the view got more magnificent until she was able to place her hands gently against the glass of the window and look out over the lake.

Gray water churned gently as it followed the current, pushing boats along with it as people travelled across the large body of water. A city could be seen rising out of the water a little way away, bustling with life as all cities do. Eva shifted her gaze closer to where she was, stunned to discover that she was on an island, the lake crashing gently into the rocky shoreline.

The island was small; she assumed that most of it was taken up by the building she was in. Green grass grew in small pockets of dirt that weren't covered by rocks or stones. Small flowers even dotted some of the grass, painting the grass red and yellow when the wind blew in the right direction. It was very pretty but Eva still didn't know where she was, she wasn't even sure if she was in Jump City anymore despite the fact that the city skyline looked familiar.

"What have I gotten myself into?" Eva muttered to herself. "If I had just speared Slade with that pipe then I wouldn't have been stabbed and I wouldn't be here." She sighed loudly and pressed her forehead against the cool of the glass, enjoying the relief it gave her burning head. That was when her eyes were drawn to a small group of people gathered around what seemed to be a filled grave. Freshly dug dirt stained the green of the grass, making it painfully obvious to anyone that it was a grave. She recognised the figure of Robin, black cape billowing to the side in the wind and realised that it was the Titans gathered around the mound of dirt. "Did one of them die because of Slade's machine? That's odd; it wasn't designed to kill without the push of the appropriate button."

She remained by the window, body pressed against the cool glass, as the Titans turned from the grave and began making their way up the hill towards the building she was in. Her curiosity spiked a little, wanting her to find out whose body was now laying in the ground. Slade had never allowed her to get to close to the Titans, choosing to do most of the work himself or with the help of Cinderblock. Because of this Eva didn't know much about the Titans. All she knew was that they were superheros and Slade had a vicious hatred towards them.

A sudden wave of nausea rocked Eva, forcing her to stumble back over to the white bed on shaky legs. Her stomach burned with pain and she ached to tear off the dress and see what damage had been done by Slade's knife. Through the pounding in her ears she managed to hear voices drifting closer with each passing beat of her heart. For the first time she actually felt nervous at the thought of being interrogated by the Titans. Robin hadn't seemed like the most gentle of people.

The sound of a door sliding open only served to heighten her nerves as she quickly slid back under the thin covers. "Eva?" came Robin's voice as his head appeared around the pale blue curtains that separated each bed. "Are you awake?"

"I am," Eva replied hoarsely, wincing at how dry her throat sounded. She met Robin's masked gaze, slightly irritated that she couldn't read his emotions through his eyes. _That's probably why he wears a mask, to hide his emotions, _she told herself. The rest of the Titans team gathered around her bed after she confirmed being awake. As she glanced over them she couldn't help but remark to herself how much of a mismatched team they made. A half-robot, a small green boy, a goth looking girl and then Robin, the boy that defied Slade's harsh treatment. _Certainly a strange group. _

"The name's Beast Boy." The green boy stuck out his hand, offering it to Eva.

She gave a weak smile and shook it firmly. "Nice to meet you. Just out of curiosity, what makes you a superhero?"

Beast Boy rubbed the back of his neck, "I've never been called a superhero before." Then he shifted into a small, green bird and flitted around the room, stunning Eva. She watched him with a bemused expression on her face, lost in the possibilities of what she could do with the power to change into an animal. He shifted back into his human form and grinned at Eva. "I can change into other animals as well," he laughed.

Eva gave a small laugh before she shifted her gaze to the half-robot. He didn't extend his hand, simply took Eva's in his human hand and shook it roughly, "Cyborg."

"I don't think I need to ask you why you're a hero," Eva smiled, retracting her hand to cradle it against her chest. She made sure to say hero instead of superhero, in case she offended any of the others.

Next in line for a greeting was the dark girl with her face hidden behind the hood of the blue cloak she wore. She seemed quiet and mysterious compared to Cyborg and Beast Boy. No hand was extended for a hand shake. All she did was raise one hand as a cloud of black shadow formed around it. The lamp on the bedside table beside Eva suddenly lifted, also surround by a cloud of black shadow. "I go by Raven." Then she dropped the lamp and left the room, leaving Eva staring at the lamp that now sat still.

"Is she usually like that?" Eva asked the three boys that were now left in the room with her. All of them nodded with small smiles.

Robin stepped closer to the bed, masked eyes narrowed a bit. "Cyborg says your wounds aren't going to kill you but they might hurt for a while. How are you feeling?"

"Like I've been hit by a bus," Eva groaned and rubbed her head. "How long have I been sleeping for?"

"Two days," Cyborg answered. The half-robot moved to one side and began fiddling with a machine that was blinking all sorts of colours.

Eva sat up abruptly, wincing as her body protested against the sudden movement. "Two days!? I've never slept that long in my life! Surely my wounds weren't _that _bad! Were they?"

Robin smirked slightly at her reaction, "You were stabbed twice. Once in the side and once straight in your stomach. Cyborg had to pull the knife out of your stomach. Not only that but you received quite a beating from Slade, hence the bruises up your legs, arms and stomach." He reached out to gently touch the skin beneath Eva's eye and she tensed slightly, not sure what he was about to do. His masked eyes saddened slightly. "And you have a black eye. But you saved our lives and we are grateful for that."

"I didn't save all of you though, did I?" she murmured, meeting his sad gaze with her own. He had yet to remove his hand from her cheek and she didn't make any attempt to force him off.

It was Beast Boy that answered, breaking the fragile silence that had invaded the room. "Slade's machine had nothing to do with you. It's not your fault that it affected Star's Tamaranean body more than ours."

_You have no idea how much it is my fault, _she longed to say. After all, Eva had been the one who had stolen all the information and parts used in the creation of the machine. Technically the death of 'Star' had been her fault. Her curiosity once again spiked at the name of an alien race. "This..Star was it? She was an alien?"

"Yes. But she was just as human as you and me," Robin answered. His voice sounded a little hoarse and Eva suspected that he and Star had been a little bit more than friends.

"I'm sorry that she died, maybe if I had of attacked earlier she might still be alive," Eva sighed sadly and hung her head. The bed moved a little as Beast Boy sat down beside her and placed his arm on her shoulder in an effort to comfort her. She looked up and he smiled a toothy grin.

"We don't even know who you are but we gotta thank you. I don't think any of us would have survived if Robin had been left to mess around." The green boy winked at Robin and then shifted into a mouse, scurrying away under the bed as Robin lunged over to get him. Eva laughed – a soft, tinkling sound – as chaos erupted around her. Beast Boy, in his mouse form, bumped into Cyborg's leg and the half-robot yelled loudly and joined in the chase to catch the green boy. Curses and shouts filled the room as Robin and Cyborg chased after the green mouse, faces shifting from rage to amusement.

Eva watched from her bed as they raced around the room, a large grin spreading across her face. Life had never been this fun under the iron rule of Slade. She pushed back the covers and slid her legs around, rising slowly to her feet. Beast Boy scurried over to her and she stooped down to scoop the little green mouse up in her hands. He squeaked happily at her as she allowed him to leap onto her shoulder and hide in her mess of brown hair. The boys appeared out from behind one of the blue curtains to see Eva standing in her short white dress, giggling quietly as a green mouse burrowed into her hair. She didn't see the flicker of emotion that flitted across Robin's face as he stared at the broken girl before him.

"Come on, Beast Boy. Stop messing around," he ordered sternly as Beast Boy peered out from Eva's brown curls. "Eva shouldn't even be standing up."

"I'm feeling fine! I managed to walk over to the window earlier without collapsing, so standing on my own two feet isn't that hard. Besides, I hate lazing around all day," Eva insisted as she reached behind her and plucked Beast Boy from her hair. He squeaked angrily at being removed from his warm nest of brown hair. Once he was safely placed on the ground he shifted back to his human form with a lazy grin.

"Beast Boy always knows how to lighten the mood," he proclaimed with a fist raised in the air. The others just looked at him and rolled their eyes.

Robin was sceptical as he looked Eva up and down, observing the many bruises that littered her legs and arms. He could only imagine what her stomach looked like after being stabbed twice. The memory of her broken body lying crumpled in a puddle of her own blood flashed before his eyes and he pushed it away. There was no way he'd let that happen to her, or any of his teammates, ever again. "In a week we will see how your injuries are healing up and then we might put you through a training round, just to see how good you really are. For now you can use one of the spare rooms until we decide whether you can join us or not."

"Join you? In what?" Eva questioned, raising her eyebrow.

"As a Teen Titan," Cyborg answered, finally speaking up after his lapse of silence. "Having someone like you on the team would be amazing. Your skills against Slade were mad, almost as good as Robin's!"

The leader glanced at Cyborg with narrowed eyes but didn't say anything.

Eva gripped the edge of the bed as she sat back down, shocked at the thought of being a Teen Titan, of being a hero. Fighting villains like Slade to save people instead of doing their dirty work. Being admired as a good person instead of being looked down at. Having a home. It sounded perfect.

But there was a niggling thought at the back of her mind. What would they say when she told them – eventually – about her past with Slade. Would they still accept her after they found out she had been Slade's apprentice for five years? Probably not. She'd just lose another home and another chance at a new life because of that evil man and his manipulative ways.

The pressure of a hand on her shoulder brought her leaping out of her pit of thoughts and she twisted her head to find Robin smiling gently at her. "Would you like to come into the common room? Personally I'd like to hear your tale and I'm sure the others would too." Her blood turned to ice at the request but Eva knew she couldn't say no without them becoming suspicious. _They'll understand, _she told herself, _they won't care and they'll accept you for who you are now! _

She couldn't help but make one last feeble attempt at keeping her life a secret, "But I'm only in this small dress and it's not exactly the longest of dresses. I'd feel more comfortable in my own clothes."

"We washed the blood out of your clothes," Cyborg commented as he opened one of the drawers and pulled some black clothes out, _her_ black clothes. "But the middle is still ripped open and none of us can sew."

"Just bring me a needle and some black thread, I'll stitch it myself," Eva said quickly as she grabbed her clothes and spread them out over the bed, eyes lingering on every article. Her black tights, fluffy skirt and t-shirt. A feeling of contentment washed over her as she stared at her clothes. They were all she had left now; all that was left of her was sewn into the fabric of these clothes. They were her home.

The door slid open and a needle – followed by black thread – floated in surrounded by a cloud of black shadow. Eva stretched forwards to stare around the white curtain at Raven. She flashed the quiet girl a small smile, "Thank you."

"Don't mention it," Raven muttered and then left, allowing the needle and thread to fall on the bed.

Robin rose to his feet, pulling Beast Boy up with him. "When you're done fixing your clothes just walk straight down the hall and out the door. That's the common room where we'll all be waiting for you. Try not to take too long."

Eva nodded and waved goodbye to the boys as they exited the room, which she now guessed was the infirmary. With the room now silent she picked up her shirt, found the jagged tear and set about guiding the small needle through the fabric.

Soon she would need to spill her secrets and try to mend her life just like she was mending her shirt, one stitch at a time.

* * *

**AN: I suck at romance, just warning you. I don't mind not getting reviews, I can see that people are reading it and that's all that matters. **

_**~ Twist ~**_


End file.
